


Beginning Spark

by Some_RandomWriter



Category: Apex Legends (Video Games)
Genre: Character conflict, Complete, DarkSparks, F/F, Slow Burn Romance, Wattson x Wraith, a lot of fluff, awkward lesbians, maybe angst?, romantic
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-26
Updated: 2020-08-15
Packaged: 2021-03-06 00:54:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 10
Words: 13,596
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25524709
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Some_RandomWriter/pseuds/Some_RandomWriter
Summary: After Wattson was attacked by the prowlers during the broken ghost mission, Wraith took it upon herself to look after Wattson until she was healed. However, after she was, Wraith began noticing herself change around the static defender.
Relationships: Wattson | Natalie Paquette/Wraith | Renee Blasey
Comments: 16
Kudos: 166





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I’m just too lazy to name the chapters so they will go by number. There will also be more than one chapter.

Renee stayed beside Natalie’s bedside for days until she woke up. Her last mission ended terribly, resulting in her getting injured severely; Alexander came in just as much as Renee did. She was laying next to her when Natalie awoke, her head resting on her lap. Natalie looked down at her, a little surprised at the scene; though she appreciated it nonetheless, this action made her smile softly. She rested a hand on Renee’s head, running her fingers softly through her hair. 

She’s awake

Lifting her head up, Renee looked at Natalie. “How long have you been waiting mon ami?” She asked, her smile always managed to brighten up the room, even if she looked tired. “Uh..um, just a while..” She said softly, which didn’t convince her. Natalie rested her hand on Renee’s “you’re a bad liar” she said with a soft chuckle. 

Nice lie there dumbass

“I was just worried about you..” Renee mumbled, looking down. Natalie rested a hand on her cheek “It’s nice knowing that you’re so worried about me..” she said softly. Renee leaned into the touch, closing her eyes; though she was never much for contact, Natalie’s was always one she welcomed. “I don’t care about many people here, but you’re definitely one of em’ Natalie..” she whispered with a soft sigh. 

Natalie looked at her, surprised with how caring Renee was and how genuine she seemed. She leaned forward, pressing a soft kiss against her temple “Thank you” she muttered, this action making Renee’s face redden. 

She likes you  
Ask her out once she’s healed

“No problem..” Renee bit her lip shyly as she leaned back in her chair, her hand still resting on the bed. “Um, want me to get Alexander?” She asked, standing up. Natalie wanted to stay with Renee alone for a little longer, but she didn’t want to admit it as she was never good with people. She reluctantly agreed before Renee went out to find him.

He walked, a look of complete relief on his face. Clearing his throat, he sat beside her “I’m...very grateful to see you awake Ms. Paquette” he said, Natalie resting a hand on his with a smile. “Wraith told me you were worried” she said, making Alexander look back at her, glaring a little. She squeezed his hand “Don’t be upset Doctor Caustic”. That glare sent shivers up Renee’s spine as she did fear him a little, after seeing how mad he got at Loba, it made her steer clear from him a little more.

“Alexander is fine Ms. Paquette, but please rest. We’d like to have you back in the ring with us, the absence of your presence is upsetting to say the least...to most of us at least” he said with a soft sigh. “I hope I can be of service to you during your recovery” Natalie smiled. “I’ll be fine, I won’t take long I’m sure” she said as she watched him stand up. Alexander gave her a nod before he left, taking one more look at her before leaving the room. Renee went back to sit beside Natalie. “You had to tell him that I told you that he was worried? He doesn’t like being soft” 

Natalie pouted a little “I thought it was cute that you were so worried for me...but you needed to take care of yourself as well chérie…” she muttered, messing with the bandage on her arm. That’s a new name, though, it was nice to hear. Renee thought it probably meant friend or something so she didn’t bother asking what it meant. “I’m alright..” She said, laying her head back down on her lap while Natalie went back to continue playing with her hair. “Well, when you’re feeling better, how about we grab a drink at Mirage’s bar?” she asked, turning her head to look at the defender. Natalie smiled and nodded “That ...sounds very nice, I’d love to” She said as she laid back in bed again, looking down at Renee. It was rare to not see her eyes glowing, and as amazing as they were when they are, they looked so beautiful when they weren’t so bright.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Natalie and Renee go on a little break from everyone to King’s Canyon.

Natalie of course stayed in bed for the next few missions, but not many. She was already working to piece together the artifact with Tae Joon after the next missions, then the incident with Hack happened. Renee wasn’t there in the heat of the moment but a little after. Hearing the legends arguing with each other as she walked in was normal, until she saw Natalie covering her ears and asking for space. 

Renee took her somewhere quiet. Somewhere she’d probably like...King’s Canyon. They walked around containment and bunker, Natalie occasionally skipping rocks as they walked along the small rivers in front of bunker. “They ruined my home..” She muttered. “Don’t get me wrong, I love the charge towers, but just seeing so much destruction to King’s Canyon hurts me” she explained as Renee listened to her and watched her continue to skip rocks and speak. The skirmisher sat on one of the houses’ balconies while looking down at Natalie. 

Natalie then looked up at Renee with a soft smile “Why are you sitting up there, are you a monkey now?” She asked. Renee blushed a little and hopped down from the balcony, ignoring the little comment from the engineer and putting her hands in her pockets. “Feelin’ better Nat?” She asked as they continued to walk along the river. Natalie nodded and rubbed her arm as they made their way to salvage. King’s Canyon was always so peaceful when it was empty, and when it was nighttime. “Yes, a little..Thank you, Wraith” Said the defender. Wraith. Come to think of it, no legend called her by her actual name—Renee. “Hey nat, do me a favor?” She asked as she turned her head to look at Natalie, who was staring up at a flyer.  
“Hm?” She hummed.  
“Call me Renee” 

Natalie looked at Renee and tilted her head a little in confusion “I thought you didn’t want anyone to call you that..” She said softly. Renee raised an eyebrow “When did I ever say that?” Natalie smiled and looked at her sneakers.  
“You kicked Elliot when he said Renee once...So the legends made it an unspoken rule to just call you wraith. I thought it was a little funny that he fell so quickly, but you intimidated me a little then so I just called you Wraith if I needed you.” She explained. Renee messed with her scarf, pulling it up over her nose shyly. 

“I don’t scare you now, do I?” She asked, not making eye contact with her. Natalie shook her head, putting her hands in her jacket’s pockets.  
“I wouldn’t be out here if you did chèrie, You do the opposite in fact, I um..I prefer to be around you than any other legend..” She admitted, Renee blushed under her scarf and muttered  
“O-oh...why? I-I don’t think I’m that special..” Natalie grinned and looked at the skirmisher “You don’t give yourself enough credit, You’re very sweet...At least to me and pathfinder.” 

“That’s because you guys don’t get on my last nerve..Elliot does...sometimes” Though he annoyed Renee, she still couldn’t help being friends with the dumbass, He was still nice to be around.  
“You two just seem like siblings with how much bickering you two do” Natalie giggled.  
“Even in the ring, You two still bicker.” Renee pulled her scarf up further  
“Because, he’s an idiot..” 

“You sound like Tae Joon” Natalie pointed out. Renee sighed and sat down on one of the buildings in salvage, helping Natalie sit beside her. “Just not as smart.” She chuckled. Natalie playfully hit her shoulder “He’s not that smart, he forgets basic equations that you learn 11th grade physics!” Renee looked down  
“Still better than me”. Natalie looked at Renee “Did- I-I didn’t mean to hurt you..” She said worriedly, messing with her gloves.  
“Oh! no no you didn’t hurt me, it’s okay.” Renee tried to reassure Natalie while the voices barraded her.

Don’t be stupid.  
Don’t be weak in front of her, she doesn’t need your shit right now.  
She needs a friend right now, not some depressed bitch.

‘Leave me alone..’ She thought to herself. The pain in her eyes was apparent and Natalie noticed this. “Renee? What’s wrong?” she asked, her voice as gentle and sweet as ever. 

Don’t make her worry.  
She doesn’t need more issues.  
Lie to her.

“Nothin’ don’t worry about it. Just the voices again” She sighed and gripped her scarf. Natalie brows were furrowed in worry as she nervously reached her hand to Renee’s back, rubbing it softly. “Anything I can do?” She asked. Renee blushed as she still gripped her scarf “No, They quiet down when they wanna.” 

The worry never left Natalie’s face. She continued to rub Renee’s back as they looked at the stars, and eventually, Natalie rested her head on Renee’s shoulder, her fingers slowly trailing up and down the skirmisher’s back. ‘Should I ask..?’ She thought to herself.

No. Do not ask now.  
Wait until this whole ordeal is over first.  
She will say she doesn’t know.  
You don’t know if you will be her first relationship.

Well that answers that question.

They continued to just talk when Renee’s phone buzzed. With a sigh, she took it out of her pocket. Of course it was Caustic. The text was simple: ‘Bring ms. paquette back, now.’. Fucking Caustic. She mumbled something under her breath before turning her head to Natalie “Hey, Caustic’s lookin’ for us...We should head back.” Natalie sighed and gently gripped Renee’s shirt. “I..Don’t want to go back yet…” she mumbled, nuzzling her head further against Renee’s neck, her cool skin brushing against Natalie’s nose. “I don’t want him or crypto to talk to me for a while...what I heard today was just..too much.”

Renee wrapped an arm around her waist. “I’ll keep 'em off of you Nat…” She said softly before standing up, still holding onto Natalie. She definitely was going to miss being this close to her, but for now, Natalie was more important. They made it back to the dropship and Renee took Natalie back to her room. Before she went in, She hugged her tightly. “Thank you. I needed this..” Natalie said with a soft smile. Renee decided to not be awkward for once and hugged her back, gently squeezing her which made Natalie smile brighter. Renee pulled away from the hug and said softly “See you tomorrow then..”.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Caustic tries to intervine between Natalie and Renee, Natalie insists to a worried Renee that they should act like normal, ignoring Caustic’s controlling tendencies over the static defender.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’m sorry about this chapter’s length, I hope you guys still enjoy it though!

The rest of the night, Natalie hugged her nessie and stared out the window into the night sky, smiling softly as she curled up in her blankets, thinking about Renee and how cute she looked whenever she hid her face in her scarf. Then she blushed, thinking also about how stupid these thoughts were...Renee definitely couldn’t have felt the same way, right? 

Well, wrong.

Renee was in bed as well, a blanket wrapped around her and her arms and legs tightly wrapped around a pillow, looking down at her phone. Did this actually happen or was she just...dreaming. No way can something this good happen, She was scrolling through twitter before there was a knock at her door. With a heavy sigh, she got up and tossed her phone aside before opening the door, expecting it to be Elliot or Pathfinder; but no, It was Alexander. Before Renee could speak, he held his hand up “The time you returned Ms. Paquette is unacceptable. Unlike you, she still needs her rest as it wasn’t long ago that she had just recovered. I think it’s best for both of you to keep your distance.”

Renee’s eyes glowed a little as she crossed her arms “I should keep my distance?” She scoffed. She was beyond angry of course, but it just ended up being a calm type of anger. “Then why did she go with me to go somewhere quiet? Have you even talked to her? To see what she thinks or feels?” Alexander stayed quiet for a bit. He of course didn’t talk to her, this made her scoff again “Well Caustic, we have to get up early tomorrow for matches, so, night” She said, closing the door in his face and locking it. That’s when they began:

Don’t tell Natalie.  
She’s hurt enough.

She will be mad if you don’t.  
She’ll feel like she’s being babied.  
Don’t be like Caustic, you can’t hide her from the world.

The voices sometimes can be so fucking useless. Renee sighed and laid back down in bed, staring at her phone for a while longer while deciding on what to do. An hour later, she decided to tell Natalie since she deserved to know. As far as she knew, Alexander already messed up Natalie’s and Tae Joon’s friendship, and she wasn’t going to let him mess up their friendship either...or, whatever they had. They were just friends right? Of course, Renee hoped it would lead towards something more.

When morning arrived, Renee woke up at 8 am like usual. She mumbled a swear under her breath as she rubbed her eyes, getting up from bed and going to her bathroom to get cleaned up before going to eat. In the kitchen, Elliot and Natalie and Pathfinder were already there. Running her fingers lazily through her hair, she yawned and Elliot turned his attention to her with a grin. “Hey there’s our grumpy voidwalker!” He said as he got one of her favorite mugs and handed it to her. 

“Good morning Renee!” Natalie said cheerfully, pouring some coffee in her mug with a bright grin. “Did you sleep well?” She asked as Renee put some sugar and a bit of cream in her coffee.  
“Oh...I slept alright, you?” Renee asked in return. Natalie smiled and sat on the kitchen counter and talked with her for a bit until Elliot interrupted.   
“Ladies, I need to know how many waffles you two want.”  
With a soft sigh, Renee muttered “Two” before taking a sip from her coffee and moving to sit at one of the tables by the windows. Natalie said two for herself as well and went to sit beside her.   
“Chèrie, What’s wrong?” She asked, visibly concerned. 

“Oh, she’s always like that in the mornings Nat” Elliot chimed in, she shushed him. Renee looked at Natalie and sighed before leaning in to whisper in her ear “I want you to eat first before I tell you something important” Her voice was quiet, like it usually was whenever she said her kill quips...and Natalie loved it. She blushed a little and nodded before Elliot brought over their waffles and the other legends joined them for breakfast. After Renee and Natalie finished, they left the kitchen and went to Natalie’s room, Alexander noticing this immediately. 

Once they were in her room, Renee locked the door and this made Natalie’s heart jump. Before she could say anything, Renee blurted out “Caustic told me to stay away from you.”  
Natalie’s expression changed from one of shock, to anger. “ce...connard! il n'est pas mon père! pourquoi est-il agi de cette façon?!” Natalie said angrily in french, balling her fists. “Je ne suis pas un enfant! Je suis une putain de femme adulte!” Renee held her shoulders.

“Nat, Nat...I dunno what the hell you’re saying but calm down alright? We got this..” She said softly, rubbing her shoulders. “Okay?” She asked, though this clearly wasn’t the time, Renee found it oddly cute when Natalie was angry like that.   
Natalie hung her head low and held her wrists. she then took some deep breaths before nodding. “I-I’m sorry...Yes, today in the games…” She lifted her head to look into Renee’s eyes, which made the skirmisher blush. “Treat me like normal, I will handle Dr. Caustic..” 

Renee nodded and patted her shoulders gently “Let's check the roster, see who’s on today.” Natalie smiled softly and agreed. They were going to play duos in King’s canyon, and Natalie was excited. “What are you going to wear mon ami?” She asked with a smile.  
“I think I’m going to wear vaporwave”  
Renee scratched the back of her neck “Mm..I think I’ll wear depths of the void, to try and match with you” She said with a grin.  
“See you on the dropship Nat” 

As Renee walked away, Natalie’s heart pounded. For some reason, just hearing her say her name always made her nervous and blushy. Around forty or so minutes passed before Natalie and Renee made their way to the dropship. Renee had her mask hanging around her neck while Natalie had her goggles up on her forehead, Renee was still tying her hair up and was struggling a little. Noticing this, Natalie giggled and said “Here, Let me help you”.   
Renee chuckled softly and handed her the hair tie “When was the last time you even tied your hair?” she asked.   
Natalie playfully tugged on her hair “I don’t have to help you know” She retorted with a grin.   
Renee grunted a bit in response to having her head pulled back “Hey calm down sparks” She said as Natalie began tying her hair up.  
“Sparks? Is that what you’re calling me now?” She asked with a chuckle “That’s cute” Renee blushed and pulled on her mask while Natalie pulled down her goggles. 

They decided to land in containment, Natalie pointing out two squads already. “We got this Sparks” Renee said with a grin, though her mask covered it. Natalie smiled and landed close to her. Getting their weapons ready, they took on the two squads by having them fight each other first then third partying. “We took first blood! Our currents work well together!” Natalie said happily as she started looting. Renee chuckled softly and started looting as well, grabbing a level two shield and handing it to Natalie, making her look at Renee confusingly “What? But, it was your kill” She said.  
Renee shook her head “I don’t care, I’ll find another” She said, pushing it to her chest. Natalie huffed “Renee!” The skirmisher grinned widely under her mask as she grabbed a shield battery.   
“Let’s go through Labs” She said, already running towards it as Natalie followed, pouting as she ran behind her.

The match went on with them playfully bickering over body shields and heals. Natalie was knocked a few times which made Renee fight aggressively. As Renee took out the syringe to administer it to Natalie, the engineer huffed and held onto one of Renee’s belts. “I hate this..” She muttered, which made Renee smile “This won’t hurt, hold on” 

She was a lot softer to Natalie while doing this, opposed to Elliot whenever she had to get him up. Natalie rubbed the sore spot before taking out a med kit. “Hold on, here” Renee said, handing her a phoenix kit. “I know you hate med kits and syringes” She said as she looted the death boxes, Natalie smiled softly. “Merci” She said softly as she began using it while Renee got herself a level 3 shield. 

They won the match soon after, Natalie jumping in excitement “We kicked serious butt!” She yelled excitedly as the dropship came down to get them. Renee looked at her affectionately as she continued to smile. Once they got in it, Natalie took off her goggles and cap and looked at Renee “You did great!” She said as she sat down beside her.   
Renee smiled and took off her mask “You did good too Nat” she was always awkward with compliments and this time was no different.   
Natalie smiled as they walked to their dorms “Renee, you should smile more. Really, you look so nice when you do” She said, as she took off her pylon from her back and held it in her arms.   
“Ah, I’m not much of a smiler..” Renee mumbled, taking her gloves off.   
“Well, I think you look beautiful when you smile..” Natalie admitted with a soft blush on her cheeks.

“O-oh...Thanks..” Renee nervously scratched the back of her neck as she went to her dorm and got in more comfortable clothing after cleaning herself up, as her next match wouldn’t be for several hours. She laid in bed and untied her bun, smiling softly as she thought about the match and the complement… ‘She called me beautiful..’ She thought to herself. ‘Okay I’m reading too much into this...we’re friends...though I want to be more…fuck.’


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tension between Renee and Alexander rise a little in front of Natalie, and she has to put a stop to them before things get more heated.

Their next match was at World's Edge, trios. The team was Natalie, Renee and….Caustic. God what were the fucking chances. Renee decided to just pick her Quarantine 722 outfit and went to the dropship to wait for her team. Natalie walked over to her with a bright smile and asked “Ready for another win?” 

Renee chuckled and leaned back in her seat “Always” She said as she messed with her kunai.   
Natalie nervously messed with her gloves as well and asked “Who’s with us?”  
Renee looked at her “You didn’t see the r-“ She was cut off by Alexander’s voice. “Hello, Ms. Paquette” He said, sitting in front of them and crossing his arms. She could already tell that Natalie was angry because of her pulling harder at her jacket, but damn she did a good job at hiding it in front of other people...except Renee.

It was time for them to jump out and the quickly girls split off from Caustic and Natalie began muttering angrily in french. “Hey nat, He’s in Lava city, we’re in Geyser. Just mute him okay?” She said as they landed, Renee landed in a building in front of Natalie’s building. They both muted him and began looting, They then met near the Geyser and Renee asked “Wanna keep looting? Ring’s kinda far”  
Natalie smiled at her “We have time” She said as she waited for Renee to begin walking before tripping her, making her fall in the water. 

Natalie giggled and held her hand out to help her up “Sorry Chèrie, I just wanted to see your reaction” She said as Renee pulled down her mask to pour the water out. Putting it back on, she looked up at Natalie with a smirk and pulled her in the water as well, laughing as she went to get herself up, though Natalie pulled her back down. Renee was about to get up when the static defender pulled her back down, making the skirmisher hold herself up with her hands, their faces rather close to each other. 

They stared at each other for a moment before Renee cleared her throat “W-We should get going...Caustic’s gonna kill us if we leave him for any lon..ger..” She trailed off as Natalie rested a hand on her shoulder and moved it up to her cheek  
“Dieu, tu es tellement belle…” She whispered, and for once during battle, the glow in Renee’s eyes faded, reverting back to their usual blue tone, and the voices were silent. Renee didn’t bother asking what the french meant, though she did catch one word...belle—beautiful. 

Renee blushed softly, Natalie—Natalie fucking Paquette, the woman who was smart enough to design a death ring...found her beautiful? A woman who has no memories of her past life...was beautiful to her? She had to be dreaming or Natalie just had a strange taste in women. However, Renee still acted like she didn’t know what any word meant and instead took her hand, squeezing her wrist gently before getting up and helping Natalie up as well. Natalie smiled at her and readjusted Renee’s mask before going off to continue looting like nothing happened. 

What the hell happened there?  
She likes you.  
Maybe you should tell her how you feel.  
No, wait until Caustic doesn’t bother you anymore.

There they go again, goddamn voices. Renee looked down at her mini-map as she ran after Natalie. Over the comms, she told her that Caustic was on the way and this made her huff and pick up a wingman, offering it to Renee. “You should replace that Mozambique you have, at least until we find you a flatline” she said as she also handed Renee a level 1 heavy mag. “Thanks Nat, now let's get to-“ 

Caustic opened the door and glared at them “We are supposed to be a team, you two are very fortunate that you didn’t get into any fights.” He said coldly, making Renee walk up to him. Her eyes glowed ferociously as she lowered her mask “We can handle ourselves, Caustic.” She said his name with such venom that Natalie had to step in, putting her own feelings aside to try and prevent the two from murdering each other. “Please, don’t do this now, We’re still very early in the match so behave” She said, turning her head to look at Renee.

Looking back at Natalie, she sighed and began heading towards Fragment East. Natalie stayed behind to talk to Caustic. “Excuse me but can you not threaten everyone who comes in contact with me?” She asked, looking up at him angrily.   
“She’s not right for you Ms. Paqu-“  
“Wattson, call. me. Wattson” She said as she started running to catch up to Renee, who was in the cave still, looting and waiting for Natalie to catch up. He was still muted over their comms thankfully, so if he wanted to talk to them, he’d have to be close. 

“Are you okay?” Renee asked, Natalie gave her a gentle smile, her hand resting on her arm.  
“I should be asking you that, chèrie” She said as she grabbed a shield cell.   
“I’m fine, He just got to me…” She said softly “Let’s finish this match up, are you okay on healables and ammo?” Renee asked as they began walking to the city.   
Natalie nodded as she held her R-301 tightly in her arms. ‘It’s...actually cute how much she worries for me..’ She thought to herself.

They started hearing gunshots and they ran ahead, Renee telling Natalie where to go as she ran ahead, trying to get some good positioning on the fighting teams. The women handled it very well before Caustic could arrive, and when he did, there were no more gunshots. He muttered under his breath before going to loot a box, stealing a level 3 shield before Renee could grab it. ‘Asshole.’ She thought to herself, seeing this, Natalie pinged a level 2 evo shield which Renee gladly picked up, while Natalie herself had a level 3 shield so Renee didn’t need to worry. 

The match went rather smoothly until Caustic jumped into a fight, very recklessly, making them place 5th. Renee was steaming but she didn’t say anything. Back in the dropship, her and Natalie went to the lounge and sat in front of the TV to watch the rest of the match. Renee pulled down her mask and crossed her arms, Natalie was equally as annoyed, but she tried to keep Renee’s mind off of it. “It’s okay, we’ll do better next time Mon chérie..” Natalie said, rubbing her back. Renee couldn’t help but smile a little. 

Ask her what that word means  
She always says it  
She never says this to any other legend

She sighed softly and decided to listen to the voices for once—at least, about this. “Hey Nat, what does that word mean?” She asked “Um, chérie? Did I say it right?”   
Natalie grinned and her cheeks reddened a little, though the pronunciation was a little bad, she did get it right.   
Natalie nodded and messed with her gloves nervously “It’s just a different word for ‘friend’, you know that in different languages there can be different words that translate to the same thing so...I just prefer to call you chérie, because...y-you’re special to me” She explained, her cheeks getting a little more red. 

Renee’s heart skipped “You’re special to me too Nat..” she said softly, laying her head back and turning her head back to the TV as she panicked internally. Natalie smiled and moved a little closer, resting her head on her shoulder as she kicked off her sneakers, They continued to watch the game and some other shows, eventually falling asleep on each other. She then felt something on top of her a few hours and flinched a little, though the voices quickly jumped in:

She’s still there  
Pathfinder just put a blanket on you  
You’re still safe

This allowed Renee to continue sleeping, sometimes the voices were useful...


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I apologize if any french is off as im not french but i try ;-;

Natalie woke up with a soft groan as the sun shined through the window of the lounge, the bright light hitting her face. She rubbed her eyes sleepily as she looked outside. God what time was it..? Looking at her phone. It was only 5 am. She looked at Renee, who was still deeply asleep. ‘Poor woman...she probably doesn’t sleep much…’ Natalie thought to herself before cuddling up to her again, scrolling through Twitter on her phone.

Her mind wandered and only now did she realize how cold Renee was, despite her being in such a warm blanket. Natalie put her phone down and wrapped her arms around Renee’s waist gently, making the skirmisher flinch a little and mumble quietly. “ne t'inquiète pas, chérie, tu es en sécurité.” she whispered, her voice so gentle and affectionate, this being the only time where Natalie has ever spoken to anyone so softly and loving. 

Renee’s arms were on her lap as Natalie held her, her head on her shoulder. Natalie tried to warm up the cold skirmisher to the best of her abilities, yet she was still cold. With a sigh, she sat up and pulled off her jacket, and when she was about to lay her head back down, she felt Renee wrap an arm around her. “You really need to teach me french..” She mumbled in a sleepy voice, a voice that just made Natalie’s heart pound faster than it already was. “Y-You were cold s-so I just..-“ 

“I’m always cold Nat, don’t worry about it..” Renee tried to assure the worried scientist as she laid her head back. “Mm...What time is it..?” She muttered.   
“F-Five am..” Natalie responded, curling up against her again, her jacket draped over them both.  
“We should get to bed, we’re still in our arena clothes..” Renee said softly, making no attempt at all to move.   
Natalie smiled “You’re not moving..”  
Renee grumbled sleepily, brushing her head against Natalie’s head “Because you won’t be in my bed if I do..”

Natalie’s face went red. ‘She wants me in bed with her?! W-Well I mean...She’s sleeping with me now..but friends do this right? Friends...hold each other while they sleep don’t they?’ she thought to herself before holding Renee tighter. “The legends will notice chérie…” 

Renee huffed and rubbed her eyes “Let’s check today’s roster before we get back to bed..” She said softly, getting up and handing Natalie’s jacket back to her. Natalie watched her as she went to the roster, posted up not too far from the couch they slept on. She still sat there while Renee checked who would be fighting today, what teams and where. Natalie’s mind raced as she picked at her gloves again and bounced her leg quickly. 

‘She must like me...If she didn’t, she wouldn’t have slept with me, spent the night in king’s canyon with me...She would’ve pushed me away in World’s edge when I called her beautiful and she definitely would’ve left me to deal with caustic on my own..’ She thought, lifting her head up to see Renee doing something on her phone—probably setting an alarm or something. Natalie went back to her thoughts ‘She must like me because...the way she treats me, she’s so much nicer to me than she treats the other legends...I must be important..’

Renee left the roster and went back over to Natalie “C’mon, I’ll take you to your room” She said with a sleepy smile, holding her hand out. Natalie gladly took it, allowing Renee to help her up. They went back to Natalie’s room and Renee let her be. She then went to her own room and got back in her own bed with a heavy sigh, hugging her pillow and closing her eyes, though the pillow wasn’t as warm as Natalie was. 

Meanwhile, Natalie curled up in her own bed as well, her weighted blanket on top of her and her mess of pillows around her as she cuddled her Nessie. She stayed awake as she continued to think about her feelings towards Renee and how she would go about this situation; However, she stayed awake only 20 minutes longer before she fell asleep.

When Natalie woke up again, she took a shower and got dressed in a hoodie with a glove on her scarred hand, fluffy nessie sweatpants and socks. Despite it being hot, she still covered herself a lot...mostly due to her scar and she didn’t like how it looked at all. She stood in front of the mirror, looking at herself and gently touching her scar along her cheek. “Renee ne voudra jamais de moi comme ça..” She whispered to herself before curling back up in bed, tightly squeezing Nessie.

Renee woke up a while after and got up to shower as well, standing under the water as she remembered yesterday, just Natalie touching her cheek...calling her beautiful? She smiled to herself as she finished washing her hair and stepping out of the shower. 

You need to tell her.  
Don’t tell her, what if she’s just affectionate towards her friends?  
You could get hurt.

“Fucking shut up..” She mumbled to the voices as she sat down in bed again, thinking about going to Natalie’s room to talk for a little, though she decided against it. For some reason, just always being near her or talking to her made the voices quiet down a little, in a way, Natalie was a safe haven for Renee. 

She got up a while later to go to the kitchen and grab some coffee, Alexander was there. Renee mumbled under her breath as she poured milk into her coffee, though as she did, Alexander stood beside her, looking at her angrily. “I didn’t appreciate the w-“ Renee quickly cut him off.   
“Don’t ever talk to me like that in front of Natalie. You can threaten me all you want in front of anyone else, except. her.” She said, her eyes flashing a silvery blue as she gripped her mug, her voice trembling with anger.   
“I wonder what causes your eyes to glow like that...It would be an honor to dissect you, Ms. Blasey..” He said coldly. “Keep your distance from Ms. Paquette, or I will do as I said.” Alexander smirked “Wouldn’t want to go through more tests, now would you?”

Renee was about to throw her mug at him when Natalie walked in. “Dr. Caustic, Renee...What are you two doing?” She asked, they both turned their heads and Renee only sighed, leaving the kitchen. Natalie watched as she left and she put her hand up, about to say something to Alexander but she didn’t. Putting her hand down instead, she turned around to follow Renee.

Natalie followed her to her room and stepped in with her. “What did he say?” She asked as she watched Renee sit back in bed, sipping her coffee. “Another empty threat.” She muttered.  
“Dieu...que l'homme ne cessera jamais, va-t-il?” She asked herself as she sat beside her. “I don’t know what to do with him...He won’t listen to me…” Renee set her cup down and sat up. “Natalie...I think I should keep my dist-“  
“No! Anything but that!” Natalie looked at Renee with such sadness in her eyes, that it made the skirmisher’s heart ache. 

She looked down and sighed softly “In the games at least...we can’t..”. Renee was stopped mid sentence by Natalie tightly squeezing her waist. “I don’t want to stop being myself around you, I can’t just be cold towards you…” Renee held her arms and looked down. “Nat...Alexander will never leave you alone if we keep-“  
“I don’t care!, You’re my friend! We can deal with him...Renee please, I don’t want to sneak around when I want to see or talk to you..”

Renee sighed softly and wrapped her arms gently around her. “I can’t talk you out of this...Can I..?” she asked.  
Natalie shook her head, resting her head against her shoulder. “You can’t…”  
She gently patted her waist so they could at least lay back in bed more comfortably. “You know he’s going to be on our asses..”  
“I don’t care…” Natalie whispered, gripping Renee’s hoodie.

“Okay.” Was all Renee said as she continued to hold Natalie. After a while, she spoke again “We have another match today...In around two hours..”   
“Je veux juste rester ici avec vous..But if we have to..” She muttered.  
Renee chuckled and rubbed her back slowly, her thumb running circles “Do you always speak in french when you don’t want to tell me or say certain things?” She asked as she moved her hand up to Natalie’s hair, gently running her fingers through it as she blushed softly.   
“Why must you be so good at guessing..?” Natalie muttered, closing her eyes.  
Renee closed her eyes and matched Natalie’s tone as she spoke “Not sure..” she smiled. They fell asleep soon after and when they woke up again, they got ready for their next game. 

Renee, Natalie and Elliot were on the same team this time thankfully. Elliot sat in the middle of Renee and Natalie with a huge grin, which made Renee roll her eyes in slight annoyance while Natalie just scoffed at Renee’s reaction and leaned back in her seat as Renee looked over the map with Elliot. “Let’s drop harvester, get some easy kills right off the bat”  
“No, it’s always so damn full..” Renee muttered “Drill site’s better, good loot and barely anyone lands there”   
They argued back and forth for a little until Natalie took the map from them and marked The Geyser. “Let’s go children” She said teasingly before jumping out, the other two quickly following behind.   
“Yeah yeah, sure. Geyser’s alright, don’t ask for my opinion or anythin’..” Elliot huffed and Renee smirked.   
“Just listen to the lady, Mirage.” She said, breaking off. Natalie chuckled and broke off as well.  
“Yeah go ahead, leave! I don’t need you guys!” Elliot called out before landing, making the girls giggle.

The match went smoothly until they ran into Caustic.

Renee was about to shoot him until he knocked her gun on the ground and pushed her against a wall aggressively. He dropped his flatline and began choking her, his hands tightly wrapped around her throat. He looked at her with such anger that it was actually alarming. She pulled out her kunai but Caustic just pushed her harder against the wall, squeezing her throat harder, making her lose her grip on the kunai. Elliot pulled him off and was about to shoot until Natalie finished him in only two headshots with her wingman, she muttered a french swear under her breath. Renee panted softly and picked up her R-301. “Where...Where’s his team..?” She asked, taking a few heavy breaths before looking at Natalie and Elliot, both of them looking at her concerned. “What? I’m okay.” She said, rubbing her reddened neck. 

Natalie rubbed Renee’s shoulder before giving her a shield battery. “Your shields are low..” she said softly before looting and going off. Renee got her shields up and Elliot put a hand on her back “Hey, What the hell was that? He’s rough in fights but...Not scary murder doctor scientist level of rough..” He said, Renee brushed off his concern. “It’s fine, let’s go over to Natalie..” He sighed softly and stopped her before she left. “Ren, You can talk to me. I know I probably push your buttons but you can trust me.” 

Renee looked down before rubbing the back of her neck “Not now. I’ll talk to you later Mirage.” She said before running off towards Natalie, Elliot following behind. The match ended soon after and Natalie went to her room pretty quickly, work usually took her mind off of stressful things, like what happened today. Renee was about to follow when Elliot called her “Ren, You gonna explain what happened today?” He asked, making her sigh heavily and take him to her room.


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Wraith talks to Mirage about her current problems with Caustic and Wattson.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’m so sorry about how short this chapter and how long this took me, I promise the next chapter will be better, I just need some time ;-;

Elliot took off his goggles as he sat down in a chair next to her couch, Renee kicked off her boots and sat in front of him. “What I say, doesn’t leave this room

,Elliot.”

He chuckled “Wraith, I know I’m a dumbass but I’m not an insensitive dumbass, what’s goin’ on? Is it Natalie?” 

She sighed softly and nodded “Yeah...She’s part of it.”

Elliot leaned forward, his expression being one of concern. “Is she okay?”

Renee crossed her legs on her bed. “Caustic is trying to control who she can and can’t be friends with. He hates that I’m around her a lot and he threatened me a few times...today he went a little too far and did...that. Natalie doesn’t want us to fight and believe me I try, but he keeps pushing and I guess it pissed him off.” she explained, Elliot rubbing his face.

“Why don’t you stay away from Nat?” He asked,

Renee scoffed “Neither of us wants that, and again...I tried.” It was a half attempt but Elliot didn’t need the details.

“Stay away from _him_? Maybe?” Elliot suggested.

Renee pinched the bridge of her nose “Elliot-“

“Okay okay you tried that too..” He sighed and leaned back in his chair, cracking his knuckles and putting his hands behind his head as he thought for a moment. 

“Alright...I’ll try to keep him off of you during the games and in here...I care about Natalie too—we _all_ do...And I’ll help you keep her away from him” He said as he looked at Renee, who smiled for once in front of him.

He grinned and put out his fist, Renee’s smile then turned into a scowl “I smile for once and this is what you do?” she asks. Elliot nudged his fist and said “Come ooooon, just one bump?” 

Rolling her eyes, Renee bumps his fist and he chuckles “Ayyyyyy, C’mere bring it-“

“I don’t do hugs.” Renee said, standing up.

“Alright Alright, one step at a time” He said as he got up. 

Renee went to open the door and Elliot took it as his cue to leave, but before he did, she stopped him. “Thanks.” She muttered.

Elliot’s expression turned into one a father would give to their child as they took their first steps. “AWWWW YOU ACTUAL-“

“You’re still a dumbass.”

“Yup, there it is.” He sighed. “You’re welcome though Wraith..” He then left with a smile while Renee sat in bed after closing her door.

Meanwhile. Natalie was busy getting dressed in comfy clothing before going over to Renee’s room. She came in just as mirage had left and waved at him, earning a “Hey Nat” from him before knocking on her door. 

Renee opened it with a sigh as she scratched her stomach. She was still in her arena clothing, though she only had the pants on, Renee had on a grey tank top with her scarf still. 

“Oh, hey Nat, what’s wrong?” Renee asked as she opened the door a little wider for Natalie.

The blonde engineer gave her a soft smile before stepping in “I just...needed to check on how you were..”

Renee looked at Natalie confusingly as she began taking a belt off. “Wh- ohh...Yeah I’m alright Nat” she said as she hid in her closet, taking off her pants and getting shorts on while Natalie stood by the door. 

“I-I know you’re tough but I...still worry for you chèrie..” muttered the young engineer.

Renee smiled as she stepped out of the closet, her arena pants in her hand as she grabbed her shirt, tossing it in a laundry bin. She then sat in bed and patted a spot beside her.

Natalie went to sit beside her, messing with her glove as she did. 

The skirmisher put a hand on her back gently before saying “You don’t need to worry so much Natalie…”

Natalie looked at her with a hint of worry in her eyes as Renee sighed. “Well…I told Elliot...about Caustic and us..” Natalie shut her eyes tightly, pinching the bridge of her nose. “Ell-“

“He’s a dumbass but he won’t tell anyone…he’s good at keeping secrets..” Renee reassured the worried engineer.

She looked at Renee, her expression one of a little more relief. “Okay..Okay if you say he won’t talk, then...I trust you..” She muttered, looking down at her glove and picking at it.

Renee glanced down at it then back at Natalie. “Let’s forget about him for the rest of the day, c’mon, let’s watch some movies, sounds good?”

Natalie nodded and moved to the couch Renee had, in front of a small TV. The girls made themselves comfortable before Renee handed Natalie the remote and watched her as she scrolled through the movies on Netflix. Renee was curled up on one end of the couch with a blanket while Natalie sat upright, The skirmisher looked at her and got the idea to lay on her lap, making Natalie jump a little...though she didn’t push her off nor fight it; much to Renee’s shock and delight. 

She cuddled up to the blanket and watched as Natalie picked The Lady and The Tramp. They’ve seen this movie so many times that Natalie had memorized the songs and dialogue, Renee smiled as she sang the first song of the movie, closing her eyes. Natalie running her fingers slowly through Renee’s hair as she continued to watch the movie and say a few lines to herself, making the skirmisher smile as she fell asleep.


	7. Chapter 7

Natalie barely paid attention to the movie, her attention was stolen by the woman on her lap. She played with her beautiful, long, raven hair and watched how her face would occasionally change expressions, most likely the voices getting too loud. She rubbed her shoulder gently before sighing softly and checking the roster on her phone, they had a late match in a few minutes and the movie was almost over. 

“Wake up chèrie..” She whispered as she rubbed her shoulder gently.   
The skirmisher groaned softly as she muttered “3 more minutes..”.   
Something about Renee’s sleepy voice always made the young engineer’s heart race, this time was no exception. She sighed softly and nodded “Just 3..”  
Renee hummed sleepily and gripped onto the blanket, moving closer towards Natalie.  
Looking down at her, Natalie gently twirled a piece of hair between her fingers and sighed softly.   
‘Dieu, Elle est si jolie quand elle dort..’ she thought to herself as she continued playing with her hair.

Finally, when it was time to wake her up, she did and of course Renee wasn’t the most excited. She got up with a loud, annoyed groan and Natalie looked up at her with a smile and the most loving gaze she’s ever given to anyone. Renee noticed this and decided to not say anything about it, though it was nice to be looked at that way.

The girls got ready for their match and made their wat to the dropship. As they got ready to jump, Natalie gently squeezed Renee’s bisep before saying “Let’s do our best” She smiled.  
Renee smiled back and nodded and they jumped and landed The Geyser.   
This match, it seemed like Renee was more protective, offering her only the best armor and attachments, though Natalie disagreed with it a lot.  
At this point in the match, Renee was wearing a level 2 evo while Natalie was wearing a gold shield already. “Wraith, at least use it to heal!” Natalie said with a pout.  
Renee grinned and shook her head as she used up a syringe “I’m okay, really”  
Natalie pinched the bridge of her nose and dropped her shield cell “at least take this..” she said softly, making Renee sigh as she used it up.

“You don’t need to worry about me” she said softly, before rubbing her head and heading off into another fight, Natalie running behind. Renee took down the squad rather easily, her health was very low and Natalie continued to insist that Renee take her gold shield but she resisted as she had a purple evo. This made the engineer pout and hand her a phoenix kit. She took it and used it, Natalie watching as she healed, stealing glances at her.   
‘She’s so protective of me today...I wonder why..’ she thought to herself.

She sighed softly before getting up and cracking her neck. “Let’s get going, Match is almost over” Renee smiled softly at her. They finished the match soon after and as Renee made her way to her room, Natalie held her wrist and looked at her “thank you, for giving me the shields and attachments...it was sweet of you” Renee blushed softly and smiled “I got your back..” she said softly before heading off to her room. 

Natalie was on her way to her own room when she noticed Tae Joon was standing beside the door.   
“Natalie” he said softly, looking at her as she started opening the door. Natalie ignored him but he continued to say her name until she responded “What?!”   
He sighed “Why did you stop talking to me?” 

She looked up at him “I...I don’t want to be involved in anything between you and Dr. Caustic. What happened a few days ago made me feel...so many things, things I don’t want to feel anymore, and if that means I have to distance myself from you and him, then I will” she explained coldly.   
Tae Joon looked hurt, like his heart was shattered. It was the most expression she’s ever seen from him. She didn’t care though, she didn’t want to look into his eyes as she knew if that if she did; she’d most likely apologized. Natalie sighed softly and went into her room, sitting in bed and messing with her hands as she bounced her leg repeatedly.

Natalie eventually got up to get dressed in more comfortable clothing and once she finished, she heard a knock at the door and sighed softly, opening it. Alexander was there and Natalie sighed heavily, looking up at him “What do you need?”   
He raised an eyebrow “Why are you talking to me like that?”  
“I’m tired, okay? I had a lot happen right now and I don’t want to talk to anyone.” She said, trying to close the door, but he stopped it with his foot, his arms crossed “was it her?”  
She glared at him “Leave her alone, she’s done nothing to hurt you!”   
“Yes but she’s distracting you” Alexander said, a stern look on his face.   
“She isn’t doing anything to me!”   
“You can’t be associating with such-“  
“Such what?! I know for a fact that she’s a lot better to be around than you! You do nothing but control me, you are not my father so do me a favor and just Leave. Me. Alone!” Natalie tried to keep her voice low but not low enough as Elliot stepped in, putting his arm in front of Alexander. 

“Step away from her..” he said softly, Natalie looked at him confused.   
“Elliot what-“  
“Get out of my way, Witt.” Alexander growled

By this point, the other legends had arrived and tried to disarm the situation. Alexander left with a huff and Elliot looked at Natalie “You okay there? Hope he didn’t scare ya too bad” he said softly, Natalie sighed softly and Renee came up. “What did he do to you?” She asked worriedly. Natalie smiled softly at her while Elliot had the legends leave, leaving the two girls alone. 

Natalie held Renee’s arms and looked up at her with a gentle smile “I’m okay chèrie..” she said softly, Renee holding her hips. This made Natalie’s face redden gently before she pulled on Renee’s sleeves. “Come in...I want to have a sleepover with you..”   
Renee blushed and nodded “Y-yeah, sounds good” she said softly and walked into her room. 

Renee sat in her bed and Natalie closed the door, sighing softly. She then sat at her desk, beginning to work. The skirmisher watches her as she works, messing with her hands as Natalie scribbled in her notebook and solved equations.   
“Something’s on your mind nat..”

Natalie sighed softly and rubbed her head as she leaned back. “I just want to work for a little…”   
Renee rubbed her back gently “What did he say to you?” She asked.   
Natalie rubbed her arm and sighed “Nothing he hasn’t said before…same things..” she continued to write but soon she got bored of working, which has never happened before.  
Renee patted the spot beside her “C’mere...you’re probably tired..”

With a soft sigh, she sat beside Renee and messed with her glove. “Crypto talked to me too...he wanted me to talk to him again but I can’t...not after what happened..”  
Renee held her close “You don’t need to talk to him if you don’t want to, Nat..”  
“I know but…I just feel bad...I don’t like being mean but I was just upset..I already had a lot to think about..”  
“Think about what..?” Renee asked as she held her a little tighter.

Natalie’s face reddened “A-About Dr. Caustic and...how I’m going to try and deal with him..” she was a terrible liar but it was worth a shot. Of course, Renee noticed this lie—nothing ever got past her did it? She didn’t mention the lie however and bought into it, Renee thought that she probably didn’t need her prodding into her thoughts so she let it go.  
However, Natalie didn’t think about Caustic, in fact she mostly thought about Renee...and her feelings towards her.

“You know me and Elliot have your back…” Renee said softly, resting her head on hers.   
Natalie smiled softly “Yes. It was nice to see him step in...I was worried that Dr. Caustic would start a fight..I don’t know how I could’ve stopped it.” Her smile faded a little.  
Renee squeezed her. “I always got your back..”  
Natalie’s cheeks reddened a little more before she moved her hand up to Renee’s scarf, gripping it softly. 

Renee moved up closer to the wall, having Natalie curled up between her legs, her arms tightly wrapped around her, The younger engineer still gripping the scarf. “Merci..”  
“For what?”  
“For just…being you..” 

Renee lowered her head, hiding her head against her shoulder with a soft smile while Natalie closed her eyes. ‘Maybe I do like her…’ Natalie thought to herself.  
‘I need to tell her..’ Renee thought as she closed her eyes as well.


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry about this taking forever, uploads will be slightly more farther apart but I will still keep updating, don’t worry!

As Renee slept, Natalie stayed up. She watched the door as she tightly held onto Renee. They were laying in bed, the blankets wrapped around them both as was Renee’s arm around Natalie. Her head was on Renee’s chest as she was deep in thought.  
‘What if she doesn’t feel the same? Or what if she does and she leaves? Like...papa...what if I can’t convince her to stay with me..’ she thought, her hand starting to tremble.

Renee mumbled in her sleep, pulling Natalie closer, her head resting against the engineer’s.  
‘I...really like her, but I don’t want to ruin our friendship...what if that happens..?’ She thought, looking down at Renee’s hand; which rested on her stomach. She wanted to hold it, but even now, being this close gave her a bit of anxiety ‘Why am I so nervous...we’ve gotten so much closer previously...Dieu..why now..?’.

The engineer stayed up most of the night, only falling asleep at around 3 am. They had an early fight that morning and Renee surprisingly was the first to wake up; though she encountered a problem—Natalie was still asleep, tightly squeezing her. Renee didn’t get up for a while, just watching her sleep; the voices were telling her that she was being creepy but she didn’t care, Natalie was beautiful...and she wanted to tell her...but she was just too nervous as she didn’t want to freak her out. Renee gently brushed some loose strands of hair behind her ear as she continued to gaze affectionately towards her. 

Natalie woke up a little after, rubbing her eyes and sitting up. Renee looked up at her with a gentle smile “Mornin’...sleep okay?”   
Natalie hummed in response and laid her head back down against her chest. “Mhm...I almost don’t want to get up..”  
“We got an early match...C’mon, we have to..” Renee muttered as she patted Natalie’s back, having her sit up again as she moved out of bed.  
They both got ready for their matches and made their way to the dropship, having cups of coffee as they waited to fly over king’s canyon.

Renee had her eyes closed and her head laid back in a chair while Natalie laid her head on her shoulder, the other legends talked amongst themselves. When it was time to drop, they got in position before falling in containment.  
The match went smoothly before they got in a huge fight against two squads. They ran ahead to it before Renee’s voices alerted her:

Grenade!  
It’s going to hurt Natalie.  
Move!

Though she was too late, The grenade hit her and she fell back. Looking at Natalie’s health gauge, she was low but wasn’t knocked, though it looked like she was. “Natalie!” She called out, running over to her. She kept an eye out on the bullets as she pulled Natalie away from the line of fire. It was only then she noticed her blue cap was ripped.   
The young engineer's eyes were wide and tears were streaming down her cheeks as she laid limp on the dirt.   
It took only a second to realize what she had to do, she had to forfeit the match, there was no way Natalie could fight in these conditions; she was tough, but nobody was invincible.

Natalie’s ears rang as she heard just how loud the games really were, so many bullets firing and explosions; the screaming from the flyers didn’t help either. She was covering her ears as she stared blankly at the dirt, Renee was in front of her, trying to snap her out of...whatever she was in, though it didn’t work. She had to be carried out of the match, and it was embarrassing to say the least. She couldn’t even hold onto Renee for support since her head and ears hurt too much to even try. 

Her eyes were still wide as she trembled in Renee’s arms.  
“Everything’s okay, everything’s gonna be okay Nat..” whispered the skirmisher, though Natalie was too far gone to hear. Renee had brought her into her room and sat in bed with her, holding her tightly and squeezing her. This helped a bit, but she would need some time before the ringing and the headache stopped. She was still crying softly because of the pain, Renee continued to squeeze her as she rested her head on Natalie’s, one hand holding her close as the other covered her ear; Natalie’s other ear being pressed against her chest, the crying subsided after about an hour and Natalie had fallen asleep.

Renee stayed with her until she woke up. It was almost sunset when Natalie woke up again, Renee didn’t fight for the rest of the day, she just stayed with her. Natalie rubbed her forehead before noticing how tightly Renee was holding onto her.

She’s awake

The voices warned, Renee looked down at her. ‘Poor girl...her eyes are still red..’ she thought to herself as Natalie looked up at her, Unintentionally giving her a pleading look.   
“How you feelin’?” Renee asked, still covering her ear. Natalie looked down and rested her head on Renee’s chest again. “Better…but my head still hurts..” she mumbled.

Natalie still held onto The skirmisher tightly, thinking about what happened today and what Renee could think about her now—if she even thought anything. She had to right? Natalie hoped so at least. She was pulled out of her thoughts when Renee asked “So…Was that a sensory overload? Like what happened when caustic and crypto were arguing?” 

With a soft sigh, Natalie nodded, not meeting Renee’s gaze. “Y-yes...I’m very sensitive to noises, certain textures...things like that..” she said quietly while Renee continued to hold her, her cold eyes looking down at Natalie and gently rocking her to try and calm her down more.   
“I’ll keep that in mind..”  
“It’s…not weird..?” Natalie looked up at her shyly, her eyes pleading as Renee shook her head.  
“No..No it’s not…” Whispered the skirmisher as she continued to rub the young defender’s back.   
“Why? Isn’t it um...a bit pathetic that a twenty-two year old woman shuts down when things get too loud?” Natalie asked, a gentle scoff leaving her lips.  
Renee continued to look at her still “Natalie, everyone has their triggers…”

Sitting up, Natalie pulled off her jacket and ripped cap. She looked down at it before Renee gently took it out of her hands. “I’ll fix it...Right now, you need some rest..”  
Natalie whined softly before getting up, Renee stood up and was about to leave before Natalie grabbed her wrist. “S-stand outside while I change...I want to be with you a little longer...”  
Looking back at the younger woman, her gentle, sweet blue eyes looking into Renee’s cold blue ones.  
“Yeah...I’ll be here..” She said softly before stepping out, looking down at the broken cap; she sighed as she thought about how to fix it.

Natalie opened the door about a minute later and gently tugged on Renee’s scarf to get her attention. Renee turned her head and stepped into the room, Natalie closed the door behind her and sat in bed, her legs up to her chest as she watched Renee take her boots and scarf off to get back in bed with Natalie.   
“You can change into some of my clothes if you’d like..I’m sure you’d fit in a few things” Natalie said softly.   
Renee smiled softly and went to go look for something to change. She changed in the bathroom while Natalie messed with her hands as she thought about today and how she had let herself behave like that in front of Renee, god what did she think..?  
Lowering her head down on her knee as she messed with her bedsheets. Being deep in her thoughts she didn’t notice when Renee came back, wearing a blue T-shirt with a small white lightning bolts on the sleeves and white shorts. 

“You okay?” Renee asked as she sat beside her  
Natalie nodded “Y-yes, just...thinking..”  
“About today? Nat don’t wo-“  
Natalie cut her off “Not only that, Renee…” She hugged her legs tighter. “I just...I’m confused on why you haven’t left yet...Aren’t I a lot to handle..?”  
Renee’s face softened “Why would you think that..?”  
Natalie sighed and stood up, pacing around as she tried to think of the right way to voice her concerns.   
“Renee I shut down today in a match, I’m not a reliable teammate, or friend. I always seem to have bad things happen to me, like the prowlers, Dr. Caustic harassing you, then th-“  
“None of that is your fault.”  
Natalie paused before looking at her. “I...I’m too dependent on you..”  
“Nat-“  
“I shouldn’t be, I’m an adult...I act too chi-“

Renee stood up and held her shoulders “Natalie...Nothing you do, say or whatever happens to you will never make me leave you...I promise..” She was never the type to make promises because she knew she’d never keep them, but this one? She’d do anything to keep it.

“Why do you insist on staying with someone like me..?” Natalie asked, looking at her, her hands on Renee’s wrists.   
“Because I…” Renee sighed softly, looking down. The voices began pushing her. 

Say it.  
You won’t get another chance.  
Do it, now.

Fucking voices...With a nervous, shaky sigh, Renee spoke “Because I like you, and I can’t stand seeing you so stressed Natalie. I want to be with you to help, make you feel better when you can’t sleep or have bad nights or days...I want to be with you...and not just as a friend..” Renee’s face was red, as was Natalie’s.  
The girls stood in silence for a little before Renee broke the silence.   
“Please say something..” She whispered.


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, I hope no one is offended but I included the fact that Natalie has autism. It’s canon that she’s on the spectrum and I don’t see many writers include that, so I did. I hope no one is offended, tell me in the comments your thoughts please! And please be nice ^^’

Natalie’s heart skipped as she gasped softly, she did know of course but...she didn’t expect Renee to tel her like this.

“Please..Say something…” Renee begged, her expression one of concern and...fear.

At this moment, Natalie thought about how Renee would say how she doesn’t fear anything. Now though? That was definitely fear on her face, and it hurt the young defender’s heart seeing her so scared.   
“I..” Natalie whispered.  
Renee looked down, closing her eyes as she gripped her shoulders tighter. “Even if you don’t feel the same...I’m not-“

“I-I didn’t say I didn’t like you, I-I do but I...I’m just scared…” Natalie quickly said, her face still red.  
Renee’s eyes slightly lit up “Why are you scared..?” she asked, moving her hands to Natalie’s to take her back to bed.   
“I...just..”  
“It’s okay...Don’t worry..” She whispered as she sat down, holding Natalie close.  
Gripping tightly onto the older woman, Natalie hid her face into her shoulder and closed her eyes. “I’m sorry I’m just...new to this…” she whispered after a little while of silence.

“Don’t apologize Natalie...We don’t have to do anything now…”   
“But you must have been waiting for this...for a while, haven’t you?”  
“I don’t care, All I care about right now is how you feel, how you want to take this on, and if that means that you don’t want to date m-“

“I want to! I’m just..” Natalie sat up with a soft sigh, one hand resting on Renee’s shoulder as she rubbed her eye with the other. “I don’t think you want to be with me…you don’t know the problems I have..”

“I don’t care what problems you think you have…”

“Renee please…” she sighs “I’ll talk to you later...now I need to think…” 

Sitting up, Renee looked at her worriedly before sighing softly and nodding. She got up to leave before Natalie stopped her to say “This doesn’t mean I hate you, I just...need to figure things out..”

Renee’s heart ached a little “take your time nat…” she muttered before leaving the room and going to her own. Natalie curled up in bed and cuddled her Nessie as she stared out the window for a long while before getting out of bed and going to find Ajay.

Knocking on her door, Ajay opened up, her hair in a messy ponytail and wearing a shirt that was definitely too big for her.   
“Oh? What brings ya here Natalie?” Ajay asks as she rubs her eyes, the poor woman was probably asleep but Natalie needed help, and she didn’t know who else to go to. Just from looking at the young engineer’s face, Ajay opened the door more for her “come in, somethin’s botherin’ ya” she said softly.

“Who’s- oh, What’s wrong Natalie? You look worried” Anita came up behind Ajay, as Natalie walked in—who was looking down and tightly gripping her Nessie. “I...Wraith asked me out..”

Both women looked at her a little surprised. Ajay closed the door behind her and lead Natalie to a couch in front of a small tv and a coffee table. Anita sat on the coffee table in while Ajay got her a bottle of water.   
Ajay sat beside her before Anita asked “What happened?”  
“I...I said I needed to think..”  
“About?” Ajay chimed in

Natalie turned her head to her “you know why..”  
Ajay scoffed “because of that? Nat, ya really have no faith in the girl do ya? I’ve seen the way she looks at ya...she ain’t gonna leave because of somethin’ ya can’t control..” she rubbed her back as Natalie rested her head on her shoulder  
“Am I missing somethin’?” Anita asked, Ajay looked down at Natalie.

Natalie only pulled the Nessie closer, her nose hiding against its head. She nodded to the medic as Ajay continued rubbing her back, wanting her to explain to Anita why she was so worried.  
“She’s um...she’s scared to tell Wraith that she’s on the spectrum...she thinks Wraith will leave her” Ajay explained, she looked down at Natalie and squeezed her “And she won’t, Because if she did, she’d have an appointment with me”   
Anita rubbed the back of her neck “Aw kid...Ajay’s got a  
point...When someone loves you, nothin’s gonna stop em’ from bein’ with you…”

Natalie closed her eyes before sighing softly. “Should I talk to her about this?”  
They both nodded and Natalie pulled away gently from Ajay.  
“How am I even going to tell her?” Natalie asked  
Anita looked at Ajay “this is all you babe, I have no idea”  
Ajay scoffed “You’re useless” she said with a grin before turning her head to Natalie. “Nat, ya just have to say it...there’s no way me or Anita can tell you how to do this...you’re on your own here..” she said softly, squeezing her wrist.

Natalie bit her lip “Merci…I’m sorry for bothering you two with this…”  
Ajay stood up and helped Natalie up with a smile.  
“Ya always welcome Nat, now, go get ya girl...and let us know how it goes.” She said with a grin  
Anita cracked her knuckles “if that headcase hurts you, just let us know”  
Ajay smacked her arm “Leave her alone! God...I don’t understand why ya hate her so much..”  
“Neither do I, she’s quite sweet..” Natalie said softly as she turned to leave. “Thank you again..” 

Natalie left their dorm and went to Renee’s, knocking gently.  
Renee was busy fixing Natalie’s cap when she heard the knock. “Come in” she said softly before finishing up.  
Natalie walked in, still holding her Nessie. “Hey..”  
Turning her head, Renee stood up. Her expressions were usually hard to read but she had just the slightest hint of sadness in her eyes. “Hey” she said softly, walking up to her and holding the repaired cap in her hands.

“Can I talk to you..?”

Those words made the voices go crazy, her head felt like it was being crushed by a hammer but she kept it together, for her. “Y-Yeah...What’s wrong?” She asked as she sat down on her bed, Natalie sitting beside her. She took a deep breath before looking at her.  
“I want to date you…I-I’m Interested yes but...I just want to take things slow..”

Renee’s heart calmed down, as did the voices. “Of course, you know I wouldn’t push you to do things..” she said softly, rubbing the cap’s fabric between her fingers.   
Natalie moved her hand to Renee’s wrist and gently squeezed it. “Merci…You don’t know how glad I am to hear that..” she said with a gentle smile.  
Renee nodded and lifted the cap up “I also fixed this...it was harder than I thought but it’s good as new..”

Natalie’s smile widened as she took it and looked at it, brushing her thumb against the fabric. “I can’t thank you enough Renee…” she said softly, hugging her waist tightly.   
Renee rubbed her back with a smile “No problem..”


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter will be smut or just more fluff, as well as the final chapter :) let me know what you’d like to see please
> 
> Edit: okay, I’m finishing this at 10 chapters, sorry fellas, though there will be more stories!

The women sat in bed, talking as Natalie nervously messed with her cap.  
“Hey, Renee?” Natalie started “there’s…something else I need to tell you..”  
Renee’s heart sank a bit as terrible scenarios ran through her mind, though her tone was still calm and collected as she spoke. “Yeah? What’s wrong?” She asked as she rested a hand on Natalie’s.

The defender gently held Renee’s hand as she looked down. “So…another reason I was so scared to pursue...whatever this is, is because I..” Natalie trailed off, holding onto Renee tighter.  
“It’s okay Natalie...take your time..” Renee reassured, earning a soft smile from the young engineer.  
“I…have a disorder that um...makes me do things that other people would find strange or disturbing, it increases my senses more than a normal person and-“

Renee cut her off “tell me what bothers you...I’ll try not to do them and I’ll stop others from doing them..” she said softly, squeezing her hand a little tighter.  
Natalie looked at her surprised “You...won’t leave?”  
Renee shook her head “I said it before, I’m not leaving..”  
“But…isn’t it strange? Am I not a bother?” Natalie asked, looking down at their hands.  
“No..I want to help you with this as best as I can…” Renee muttered.  
Natalie sighed softly and rested her head on her shoulder “Merci…”  
“Yeah, don’t worry..” she muttered 

They sat in silence for a while, holding hands and enjoying each other’s company.  
Renee gently brushed her thumb against Natalie’s knuckles while she thought about if she should ask about the glove or if she wanted her to leave her alone, but she didn’t, she just held onto Natalie as tightly as she could.

The women dated for around a month, and they just did little things like holding hands or kissing each other’s cheeks. Natalie was too nervous to kiss her and Renee just waited for the right moment. They had a day off so of course Natalie was working, while Renee was watching TV in the common room.  
Caustic had not left them alone, through this month of course.

He would take shots at Renee whenever he got the opportunity, completely ignoring Natalie at this point and just setting his sights on Renee. Today was no different.  
When Renee was alone, he went over to her and began picking at her “you know she will never stay with you, don’t you?”  
Renee lifted her head from her phone, looking at him with a deadly glare.

You’re in danger.  
Move.

“Why does it matter to you? You’re not her dad”  
Caustic’s expression changed to one of pure malice. “And you think you are any better? She’s too good for you...she’ll leave you once she’s tired, this is just a phase.”  
“She hasn’t left me yet, and I’ll make sure I treat her well”  
“And what can you offer? How to hear voices as well?”  
Renee stood up at that.  
He continued “Nevermind the fact that you’re also ten years older, what can she possibly see in you?”

Don’t throw the first punch  
Don’t throw the first punch  
Think about Natalie  
What would Natalie think?

Renee balled her fists as he continued to taunt her, getting close to her face. It was unbelievably difficult for her to not fuck him up right then, but she kept it together for Natalie.  
He even spit in her face before insulting her one more time and leaving. Cleaning her face off about five times with soap and water, Renee grabbed a cup of coffee before heading to her room and sitting in front of the tv to text Natalie. She smiled softly as Natalie responded with kissing and heart emojis, despite the constant harassment from Caustic...it was all worth it if it meant that she could be with Natalie.

The next day, Renee had to go fight—even if she didn’t want to. Her, Elliot and Ajay were on a team and the two chatted while Renee stayed quiet, watching Natalie from afar—who was talking to pathfinder.  
They weren’t talking about much, but he did notice how close Natalie was to Renee now, and he wanted to ask.  
“So, are you and Wraith good friends now?” He asked, his screen showing a picture of a heart.  
Natalie blushed softly and smiled “I...guess you can say that, yes mon ami” she said happily.  
“Oh good! I was hoping you two would be good friends soon! I noticed how much she looks at you while in the ring!” He mentioned, his screen showing a smile.  
Natalie messed with her hands with a bright smile as they continued to talk.

They all dropped down into the ring and the match began, she ran into Caustic a few minutes later, who bashed the butt of his flatline against Renee’s head. Barely did any damage, but it hurt like shit. She stumbled only for a moment until she turned to shoot him, but he pushed her R-301 onto the floor and continued to hit her with the flatline. Renee tried to get up but he stomped on her back, causing her to fall again as he continued to hit her.  
Mirage and Lifeline tried to stop him but his gas traps were in the way, and it seemed like he left his teammates alone to get her.  
Before they could get close, Ajay was sniped and they had to handle that before getting to Renee.

Natalie was waiting to be respawned when she saw what was happening. “Where the hell are mirage and lifeline?!” She yelled at the TV, Pathfinder and Bangalore were watching with her.  
“I think they got stuck in another fight..” Bangalore said, rubbing the back of her neck.  
When Renee was close to almost dying, Mirage shot him a couple times and he was down.  
Renee spit out a bit of blood as she dragged out a phoenix kit from her bag.  
Lifeline sat beside her and offered doc, Renee thanked her and used a shield battery instead.  
Her eyes glowed furiously as she drew her Kunai, performing a finisher on him and looted him. 

Only a few seconds passed and he was in the respawn chamber with Natalie. Gibraltar had to hold the tiny engineer back as she screamed obscenities in french to him, the only thing coming out in English was “LEAVE US ALONE!”  
Pathfinder came over, his screen showing a face of worry as he pulled Natalie back to sit on the couch again, Caustic crossed his arms “I don’t regret a thing I did Ms. Paquette, I only wish the apex games allowed me to be more brutal.”  
Natalie was already in tears of anger “You’re heartless.” She muttered as Pathfinder tried to comfort her.

When the match was over, Renee came into the drop ship, being met by a tight squeeze from Natalie. Renee’s face was slightly bruised and she had a few bandages. Her torso was also pretty messed up but it didn’t matter, A hug from Natalie was what she needed now; she grunted softly as she wrapped her arms around the slightly taller woman.  
“I’m okay Nat..” she smiled softly “You know how these games are..”  
Natalie lifted her head and held Renee’s face, kissing her softly. Renee’s eyes went wide as she finally felt Natalie’s soft lips against her own. Neither of them expected their first kiss to be this sudden, but it was nice regardless. 

They had completely forgotten they were still in the middle of the drop ship, until Elliot cleared his throat “get a room love birds”  
Natalie blushed softly “S-Sorry!”  
Elliot chuckled “Don’t worry about it” he said as he went to his own room.  
Renee took Natalie to her room and sat on the floor to take her boots off. “Hey Nat?”  
“Oui?”  
“My…age doesn’t bother you, right?”  
Natalie smiled and sat in front of her “Non...of course not..” she said softly, holding her face. “Ten years isn’t a huge difference..”  
Renee’s head was still down “Why do you even like me?” She asked  
Natalie’s smile never left her face as she gazed at Renee with affection, gently tilting her head up.  
“Many reasons Chèrie...mainly, because you love me for me, even with the problems I have..” Natalie whispered lovingly

Renee moved her hand up to Natalie’s and squeezed it. “How am I not supposed to?” She asked as she brushed her thumb against her knuckles.  
“I’m a lot to handle Renee..”  
“I don’t care, as long as I get to be with you, nothing matters..” 

Natalie rested her head on Renee’s shoulder. Natalie intertwined their fingers and sighed softly “personne ne vous a dit d'être si doux..” she mumbled  
Renee chuckled softly “I still don’t know french..”  
Natalie kissed her neck softly “No one told you to be so sweet..” she whispered against her skin.  
Renee shivered and rested her head against Natalie’s  
“Only you make me this sappy..”  
Natalie grinned “I hope so, I’d be quite jealous if you did this with anyone else..”  
“Well, you don’t need to worry. I only have eyes for you” Renee smiled.


End file.
